# The 'What foreigners think of American food' drove me to this! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [October 18, 2004, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782 "2004-10-18T04:26:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![RandomLetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8edcca/32.png) [@RandomLetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RandomLetters)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/21 "2004-10-19T12:58:38Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > Well, where do you think those 7-11 doughnuts come from, if not a bakery? Actually, I know of at least one gas station that bakes its own doughnuts - my teenage brother works there. Of course, they are pretty good at it - they also sell the donuts to a couple local motels in addition to selling them at the station. Not a 7-11, but a Casey’s though. ---
**Author:** ![ralph124c](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/8797f3/32.png) [@ralph124c](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ralph124c)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/22 "2004-10-19T13:12:05Z")
When my British friends rib me about american food, I swiftly attack! all I have to do is mention: -Marmite: tastes like dried mud, with a dash of salt! -Jellied Eels: litlle bits of rubber, mixed with vaseline -“Curry Soup”-vile, yellow concoction; resembles fluid drained from radiators Take that, you Limeys! :wally ---
**Author:** ![Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/cc9497/32.png) [@Capt.Ridley\_s\_Shooting\_Party](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capt.Ridley_s_Shooting_Party)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/23 "2004-10-19T13:41:34Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > When my British friends rib me about american food, I swiftly attack! all I have to do is mention: > -Marmite: tastes like dried mud, with a dash of salt! > -Jellied Eels: litlle bits of rubber, mixed with vaseline > -“Curry Soup”-vile, yellow concoction; resembles fluid drained from radiators > Take that, you Limeys! :wally Only about 1% of the population eats those though 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Sean\_Factotum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/50afbb/32.png) [@Sean\_Factotum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sean_Factotum)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/24 "2004-10-19T14:16:49Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > When my British friends rib me about american food, I swiftly attack! all I have to do is mention: > -Marmite: tastes like dried mud, with a dash of salt! > -Jellied Eels: litlle bits of rubber, mixed with vaseline > -“Curry Soup”-vile, yellow concoction; resembles fluid drained from radiators > Take that, you Limeys! :wally You forgot spotted dick. Hey, I wouldn’t want to eat one that looks okay (not that there’s anything wrong with that), but why would anyone want to put one that looks diseased into their mouths? ---
**Author:** ![Saintly\_Loser](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saintly_loser/32/4045_2.png) [@Saintly\_Loser](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saintly_Loser)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/25 "2004-10-19T15:48:34Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > I’ll have to confess it did actually gross me out a little; I tried to read it objectively, but failed; to me it says "I took this stale ball of **fried** grease, **fried** it again, added some **fatty** meat, some more **fat** … No, no, no, you’re not describing things done with a donut here, you’re describing fry bread, a/k/a Indian tacos. I guarantee you Europeans have never heard of this wonderful thing, but it’s great. . . it will do some arterial damage, though. ---
**Author:** ![Tentacle\_Monster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ba9def/32.png) [@Tentacle\_Monster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tentacle_Monster)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 4:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/26 "2004-10-19T16:05:43Z")
Okay, did anyone else read the OP and think of the “twinkie-cheese weiner” scene in UHF? ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/27 "2004-10-19T20:57:43Z")
> [@ralph124c](#): > > When my British friends rib me about american food, I swiftly attack! all I have to do is mention: > -Marmite: tastes like dried mud, with a dash of salt! > -Jellied Eels: litlle bits of rubber, mixed with vaseline > -“Curry Soup”-vile, yellow concoction; resembles fluid drained from radiators > Take that, you Limeys! :wally Good thing you didn’t mention Scotch Eggs in that list. 'Cause those things are yummy! ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 8:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/28 "2004-10-19T20:59:05Z")
> [@Homebrew](#): > > Good thing you didn’t mention Scotch Eggs in that list. 'Cause those things are yummy! They ARE yummy, but egads, even most Americans think they’re a bit over the top. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![FordPrefect](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e99b99/32.png) [@FordPrefect](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FordPrefect)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/29 "2004-10-19T21:06:04Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > Well, where do you think those 7-11 doughnuts come from, if not a bakery? > > I have a friend who owns a ‘fancy bakery’; they also supply doughnuts & other pastrys to local chains like 7-11 and SuperAmerica, to some hotels, and even to 1 hospital. These bulk sales are a large part of their income. > > I asked him once if there was any difference between the doughnut that sells for $1.25 in his ‘fancy donut shoppe’ and the one that sells for 50¢ in a gas station. He said that they come from the same recipe, cooked in the same fryer, by the same cook. But in his shoppe, a pretty waitress sets it before you on a nice plate. In the gas station, you pick it up out of a bin with a sheet of wax paper. $.75 for a pretty waitress to serve me? Sold! ---
**Author:** ![Celyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@Celyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celyn)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/30 "2004-10-19T21:33:06Z")
Well I don’t _care_ about the nice unheatlhy doughtnut. **I** am eating a Penguin. (But I’m going to Google to learn what Pork Rinds exactly are, because they can’t really be what their name says, or can they? ) btw -have never heard of “curry soup”, and quite glad about that. ---
**Author:** ![OtakuLoki](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/ac8455/32.png) [@OtakuLoki](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OtakuLoki)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/31 "2004-10-19T21:55:45Z")
> [@Celyn](#): > > Well I don’t _care_ about the nice unheatlhy doughtnut. **I** am eating a Penguin. (But I’m going to Google to learn what Pork Rinds exactly are, because they can’t really be what their name says, or can they? ) [Mmmmmm… microwave pork rinds…](http://www.microwaveporkrinds.com/en-us/dept_1.html) Though touting them as health food boggles my mind… ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/32 "2004-10-19T23:27:27Z")
> [@Celyn](#): > > btw -have never heard of “curry soup”, and quite glad about that. Well, there’s Mulligatawny, but that is reddish, not yellow. I suspect **ralph124c** may have mistargeted a little and may be talking about curry _sauce_ (the kind available in chop shops), which is actually the true ambrosia. Kind of surprised ‘kidney pie’ wasn’t mentioned in there. ---
**Author:** ![Padeye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@Padeye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Padeye)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2004, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/33 "2004-10-19T23:30:35Z")
> [@LMM](#): > > No, no, no, you’re not describing things done with a donut here, you’re describing fry bread, a/k/a Indian tacos. That stuff has killed more indians than the 7th Cavalry. TheLadyLion and I are going to the Arizona state fair tomorrow night. There will be Indian Fry bread but I’m headed straight for the fried Twinkie hut. ---
**Author:** ![Celyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@Celyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celyn)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/34 "2004-10-20T00:34:35Z")
Ta for the link, **Mangetout** -I’d never have thought that the phrase “porks rinds” euqated to “light and fluffy snack”, so the site is quite accurate. I am indeed amazed. hahah - they sound like the type of things that _sound_ nasty but is probably fun to try (or seem very nice after enough alcohol 🙂 ) - if I ever meet them, I’ll eat them or try to. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/35 "2004-10-20T01:22:38Z")
> [@FordPrefect](#): > > $.75 for a pretty waitress to serve me? Sold! The only _service_ she’ll give you is to put the donut plate down on the counter in front of you, and refill our coffee cup, and maybe smile at you. **NOT** what you were thinging of, FordPerfect. Get your mind out of the gutter! :eek: ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 7:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/36 "2004-10-20T07:46:56Z")
> [@Celyn](#): > > Ta for the link, **Mangetout** -I’d never have thought that the phrase “porks rinds” euqated to “light and fluffy snack”, so the site is quite accurate. I am indeed amazed. hahah - they sound like the type of things that _sound_ nasty but is probably fun to try (or seem very nice after enough alcohol 🙂 ) - if I ever meet them, I’ll eat them or try to. 🙂 **OtakuLoki** actually provided the link. I’m quite surprised to see the ‘pork rinds’ thing - I honestly would have expected that this would be another thing that us weird Brits eat that would be considered waste by Americans. We do have pork rinds here in two broad categories; the puffy sort as seen in the link, but also ‘scratchings’ (or ‘scriggins’) - these are just nuggets of pork rind deep fried until they are hard and brittle - the experiece is a bit like eating salty gravel - you honestly can’t tell whether the noise is caused by the snack crunching or your teeth shattering. ---
**Author:** ![Mollie\_Magill](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mollie_magill/32/20882_2.png) [@Mollie\_Magill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mollie_Magill)\ **Post date:** [October 20, 2004, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/37 "2004-10-20T12:33:03Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > The only _service_ she’ll give you is to put the donut plate down on the counter in front of you, and refill our coffee cup, and maybe smile at you. > > **NOT** what you were thinging of, FordPerfect. Get your mind out of the gutter! Well, there goes her tip. What? I was hoping she’d get me a napkin. You people are disgusting. ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [October 21, 2004, 5:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782/38 "2004-10-21T05:14:15Z")
Slight hijack, but this thread reminded me-did anyone watch Leno last night? Ewan McGregor and Charley Borman were on talking about their motorcycle trip across Europe, Asia, and North America. At one point in Mongolia they were served testicles. Sheep, bulls, pigs, you name it, there were balls of every animal in there. (And to think I used to gag at my cousin gnawing on pigs’ feet!) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-what-foreigners-think-of-american-food-drove-me-to-this/269782.md?page=1)